Thesis
Investigating the epigenetic effects of microplastic exposure in Bluegills (Lepomis macrochirus) using methylation sensitive-AFLPs
University of West Florida,
Master of Science (MS), University of West Florida
2020
Abstract
Marine debris is an increasing threat to the world's oceans and the abundant organisms that inhabit them. Microplastics are remnants of macroplastics that have broken down to fragments smaller than 5mm through wave action and other natural processes or were originally manufactured to have micron-sized dimensions. These fragments are then consumed by microscopic marine organisms, like zooplankton, and are bioaccumulated up the trophic levels. Accumulation of plastics in the gut of organisms can have a variety of repercussions, such as starvation due to blockage in the digestive tract, chemicals used in producing plastics leaching into the cells of organisms, and modifications to the genome. One such modification is methylation which is often associated with a decrease in gene activity. While methylation has been studied in teleost fishes, little work has been done to show how microplastic exposure affects this process in any species. For this study, we investigated the accumulation of methylation due to microplastic exposure within the genome of cultured Bluegill (Lepomis macrochirus) cells using methylation sensitive-AFLPs. Following MSAFLPs, the methylation state was analyzed through capillary gel analysis and electropherograms and found that differential methylation occurred between several of the control and experimental groups; however, these differences were not proven to be dose- or time-dependent.
Details
- Title
- Investigating the epigenetic effects of microplastic exposure in Bluegills (Lepomis macrochirus) using methylation sensitive-AFLPs
- Resource Type
- Thesis
- Publisher
- University of West Florida,; Pensacola, Florida :
- Format
- text;electronic resource;remote;computer;online resource
- Number of pages
- 1 online resource (ix, 49 leaves : charts)
- Copyright
- http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC-EDU/1.0/
- Identifiers
- 99380090839006600
- Academic Unit
- Biology
- Language
- English
- Awarding Institution
- University of West Florida; Master of Science (MS)
- Theses and Dissertations
- Master of Science (MS), University of West Florida